Letter: Police put up with a lot; so cut them some slack

Dear editor: I am a 69-year-old resident of Saline County and Vietnam veteran. Recently, I watched a documentary on the Vietnam War and it left a very vivid memory. Nearly 50 years ago, Aug. 15, 1968, stands out the most - a dark, rainy night around 2 in the morning the company came under a heavy mortar attack, hit with mortar schrapnel.

I got to come back with a normal life. A lot of my buddies didn't.

Men and women of all races and nationalities paid the ultimate price for us to be free, live safely, to pursue our dreams and freedom of speech, but not to use the national anthem as a crutch.

When I saw able people kneeling as the anthem was being played, to be nice, it made me sick. Every one of us has said things and done things we regret and forget about.

As police go, I probably wouldn't make it very long - having to deal on a daily basis with drug people, resisting arrest, fleeing, drunks and what have you.

And nobody knows what they'll do until the last split second when they get a gun or knife pointed at them or shot at, believe me.